Awning for freight cars



eh. 351 D. s. ELLIS-'5 ETAL 2,540, 35

AWNING FOR FREIGHT CARS Filed Sept. 5, 194a INV NTORS, 0

Patented Feb. 6, 1%51 UNE'E'ED STATES PATENT OFFICE AWNING FOR FREIGHT CARS Daniel G. Ellis and Josephus C. Sharp, North Charleston, S. 0., assignors, by direct and mesne assignments, to The Elwing Corporation, Wilmington, N. 0., a corporation of North Carolina Application September 3, 1946, Serial No. 694,536

Claims. i

This invention relates to canopies or awnings for freight cars, and it has for its object the provision of a Water shedding instrumentality projectable into a freight car and extensiblefrom the door opening of such freight car, so that operators loading or unloading the car will be protected from rain and the inside of the car will also be protected from the entrance of rain which might damage the contents of the car or interfere with the operations of the workmen loading or unloading the car.

An object of this invention is to provide attachments in the nature of brackets, removably securable to the door frame and to the edge of a door opening, the said brackets having novel means for attaching them in place and for accommodating them to door frames and doors of different widths, or to other door frame trimmings or door trimmings as, in some instances, metal strips are applied to the door frame or to the door. Hence, it is desirable that these brackets be adaptable and securable to cars having different equipments in respect to the foregoing.

A further object of this invention is to provide supports for the awning or canvas or other material on which the rain may fall and be collected so that it will shed therefrom at one side or the other of the awning on the outside of the car; and it is furthermore an object to provide supports for the inner and outer end of the awning and they may be removably held by arms or rods anchored in the brackets, and when the awning supports are removed from the arms, the awnin may be rolled on the said supports.

A further object of this invention is to provide a detachable awning for freight cars, having comparatively few, inexpensive parts which have proven efiicient and satisfactory in use.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this application, wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in which Figure 1 illustrates a horizontal sectional View of a fragment of a freight car, showing a device embodying the invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 illustrates a sectional View on the line 2-2 Of Fig. 1;

brackets and the parts associated therewith;

Figure 4 illustrates a sectional view on the line 5-4 of Fig. 3;

Figure 5 illustrates a sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Figured illustrates a sectional view on the line 66 of Fig. 3;

Figure 7 illustrates a view similar to Fig. 6, with the filling block in a different position; and

Figure 8 illustrates a perspective view showing the pairs of brackets or arms for supporting the awning.

In these drawings It denotes a fragment of a box car having the usual sliding door II, and in Figures 1 and 2 the door is shown open and brackets are applied to the car side at the door opening and to the edge of the open door. The brackets, in the present embodiment of the invention, may comprise a body I2 of wood or metal construction, having vertically disposed apertures I3 and as which form sockets, the function of which will be presently explained, and the said body has a recess in its side, one end wall [5 of said recess having a threaded aperture [6 therein for the reception of a set screw H which is intended to be threaded through the end of the body and caused to impinge the side of the car or the surface of the car door at its edge. If the space between the surface 55 and the surface H3 at the opposite end of the recess is such that the screw I! will not operate to clamp the bracket in place, a filling block is may be interposed between the end of the set screw and the element to which the bracket is to be attached, this relation of parts being illustrated in Figure 3 where the filling block is is interposed between the end of the screw and the door H.

In order to have the filling block at all times in assembled relation with the body of the bracket, the said filling block has an apertured lug 20 which is slidable on a guide 2! comprising a length of metal having angularly disposed ends 22 and inturned portions 23 anchored to the body. This relation of parts is shown in Fig. 5 and it is obvious that the filling block may be moved longitudinally of the support 2! so that it may be interposed between the end of the screw and the object to which it is to be clamped, or it may be interposed between the object to which it is to be clamped and the end It of the recess, in which event the screw would be made to impinge the member to which the bracket is to be clamped which, as shown in Fig. 3, is the door H.

The brackets being thus adjustably positioned 3 and held are intended to be attached to the car on two sides of the door opening, and the brackets are intended as supports and anchorages for the awning frame, which awning frame is removably applied to the brackets, and the awning frame comprises outwardly extending arms or rods 24, each of which has its inner end provided with a lug or hook 25, and one of such hooks is to be applied to one of the openings or sockets M; The arms thus extend outwardly from the bracket and have eyes or loops 26 at their outer ends, into which the ends of a rod 27 are lodged and supported. The rod may be removably applied and an awning 23 has its end looped around the rod and secured in place in appropriate Way, so that when the rod is removed from the bracket, the awning material may be rolled on it. The inwardly extending portion of the awning is likewise supported by rods, such as 29, each having a hook or pintle 36 which is lodged in one of the openings l3 of the bracket, and the inner end of each of the rods has a similar loop or eye 3i, which eyes receive the ends of a rod 32 on which the inner end of the awning is secured, as described, and the awning material may be rolled on the rod 32, if desired, or can be rolled on each of the said rods. In any event, the awning support and the brackets are removably secured in place and they may be readily installed or dis-- mantled so that an inexpensive and efiective equipment is produced. If desired, one of the outer rods 24 may be dipped slightly at its end so that the awning would be canted slightly to one side or the other, for the purpose of more effectively disposing of the water which may collect in the awning and in this way the water would be discharged at the side of the loading board 33 which is intended to span the space between the car and a loading platform or truck with relation to which the cargo is to be loaded or unloaded.

We claim:

1.111 an awning for freight cars, brackets adapted to be secured to elements on each side of a door opening of a freight car, each bracket comprising a body having vertically disposed apertures forming sockets, a pair of awning supports adapted to extend outwardly with respect to the brackets, a second pair of awning supports adapted to extend inwardly of the car with respect to the brackets, each awning support having a pintle adapted to be lodged in one of the sockets of the bracket, and each of the awning supports having eyes at its outer end, a cross rod applied to the eyes of each pair of awning supports, and awning material having its ends attached to each of the rods.

2. In an awning for freight cars, brackets each comprising a body member having apertures forming sockets and provided with a recessed edge having ends for embracing a support to which the bracket is secured, a screw threaded longitudinally of the body in one of the ends of the recess and adapted to impinge a support engaged by the body at the other end of the recess whereby the screw binds the bracket in place, a pair of rods adapted to extend inwardly of a car, a second pair of rods adapted to extend outwardly of the car, each of said rods having a hooked end forming a pintle adapted to be lodged in a socket of the body, a cross rod supported on the outer ends of each pair of rods, and an awning material secured to the said rods and adapted to extend from the interior to beyond the exterior of the said car.

3. In an awning for freight cars, brackets adapted to be secured to elements on each side of a door opening of a freight car, each bracket comprising a body having spaced apart vertically disposed apertures therein, a pair of awning supports adapted to extend outwardly of the door opening, each awning support having an element adapted to be lodged in one of the vertically disposed apertures of the bracket, a second pair of awning supports adapted to extend inwardly of the door opening, each awning support having an element adapted to be lodged in the other of said vertically disposed apertures in the bracket, means connecting the free ends of said awning supports, and awning material having its ends attached to said connecting means.

4. In an awning assembly for use with vehicles having a door opening, brackets adapted to be affixed to opposite sides of said opening, each of said brackets having an opening therein, an awning support comprising a pair of longitudinally extending members, each of said members having a bent portion insertible into said opening in one of said brackets, a transverse member for supporting an end of said awning, means on said longitudinally extending members for supporting said transverse member, and means adapted for cooperation with said brackets for supporting the other end of said awning.

5. In an awning assembly for use with vehicles having a door opening, brackets adapted to be afilxed to opposite sides of said opening, each of said brackets having an opening therein, an awning support comprising a pair of longitudinal rods each having a bent portion insertible into said opening in one of said brackets, a transverse rod for supporting an end of said awning, loops on said longitudinal rods for receiving said transverse rod and supporting the latter, and means comprising other rods engageable with said brack-- ets for supporting the other end of said awning.

DANIEL G. ELLIS. JOSEPHUS C. SHARP.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,376,218 Morant Apr. 26, 1921 1,827,427 Fincher Oct. 13, 1931 2,174,609 Waage Oct. 3, 1939. 2,328,718 Haykin Sept. 7, 1943 

